Skull signed by Dali, Bob Dylan handwritten lyrics, more at Gotta Have Rock and Roll auction, Dec. 1st

Human half-skull with teeth in red paint, signed by the surrealist artist Salvador Dali, with a letter signed by witnesses Richie Havens and Ronny Sunshine (est. $5,000-$10,000).

New York City auction house Gotta Have Rock and Roll is hosting an internet-only auction that’s already online (at www.gottahaverockandroll.com) and ends on Friday, December 1st. The sale features many one-of-a-kind celebrity items, such as a collection of images from Madonna’s first known bare-all photo shoot from 1977, Tupac Shakur’s death certificate and earliest known musical recording, handwritten lyrics to Michael Jackson’s hit song Billie Jean, Lady Gaga’s Halloween Lily Atwood worn dress, the Catwoman costume Michelle Pfeiffer wore for her role in the movie Batman Returns, and many other items.

Bob Dylan’s handwritten and signed lyrics to his hit song Like a Rolling Stone, in black ink on Dorchester Hotel (London) letterhead; comes with COA (est. $100,000-$125,000).

GottaHaveRockandRoll.com is an online auction site devoted to rock and roll and pop art. It was launched in 2008. At its Rock and Pop Art Auction in 2008, a new world auction record was set for the highest priced Elvis Presley item ever sold – his famous peacock jumpsuit, which will be included in the new edition of Guinness World Records. Another highlight of the auction was John Lennon's talisman necklace, the same necklace worn by Lennon in the infamous nude cover photograph for John and Yoko's Two Virgins album in 1968 and worn by Lennon constantly in 1967 and 1968. The necklace hammered for $528,000. For more info, click here.

Jackson’s International’s Dec. 5-7 auction will be a veritable fun trip across the globe

Meticulously hand-made Native American Sioux beaded and quilled hide man’s war shirt and leggings, probably made in the first half of the 20th century (est. $3,000-$6,000).

Jackson’s International’s upcoming three-day auction event, December 5th, 6th and 7th, is titled World Treasures: Important Native American, Asian, European & American Works, and is a veritable trip across the globe for collectors and lovers of antiques and wonderful objects. The spectacular one-owner lifetime Native American collection, for instance, features over 400 items from 1000-1925, including California, Southwest and Northwest basketry, Plains beaded items, Southwest pottery, Navajo weavings and stone artifacts. The auction will be held online and at Jackson’s International’s gallery in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Doyle's auction of photographs on Thursday, December 14th, online and at the gallery in New York City, will feature a wide range of historical and fine art photography, to include an Ansel Adams Museum Set – 75 gelatin silver prints of Adams’s greatest images, each one signed in pencil by the legendary photographer. It will be offered as 70 individual lots, plus one group lot for the five-image Surf Sequence. Estimates range from $3,000-$5,000 to $40,000-$60,000. Ansel Adams (1902-1984) was the preeminent 20th century photographer of Western landscape. He was also a founder of the influential Group f.64.

Prepared several years before Adams’s death, the Museum Set is among the most comprehensive known to exist. Such sets typically consist of 25-50 images. This Museum Set contains as its nucleus some of the most famous Adams images, including Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico 1941 (est. $30,000-40,000); The Tetons and Snake River, Grand Teton National Park (est. $30,000-50,000); and the majestic 1940 five-print Surf Sequence (est. $40,000-60,000). The Museum Set was acquired by a private collector from Adams in the 1980s, and was later donated to The College of New Rochelle in 2012. For more info, click here.

Gavels and Paddles

Ken Hall is a longtime observer of the antiques and collectibles scene. He’s been writing pre-sale and post-sale press releases for auction houses since 2006.
To contact Ken about his writing and distribution services, you may e-mail him at kenhallpr@gmail.com.